(05-18-2020 10:23 PM)CarlSmithCenter Wrote:  A small detail that didn’t make sense was Houston to the Big East while the Big XII took SMU and TCU. I would think Houston would get the Big 12 call instead of SMU due to public school politics and preferring to have only one private school in the Metroplex along with a presence in Houston.

He said that Houston wanted to be in the Big East over the B12 because of bad blood from when Baylor was picked over them a while ago.

If the Big East ended up being the conference as described in the article, it still becomes a tweener conference, though more solid than the current American. The Big East didn't have a contract bowl even though it was an AQ conference -- hard to see the Peach or Citrus bowls taking the Big East, and the Orange Bowl had no interest in us either.

This scenario would have put UCF in the same position as USF.

(05-18-2020 04:24 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:55 PM)CitrusUCF Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:21 PM)MidknightWhiskey Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 01:39 PM)esayem Wrote:  The problem is, not only was UCF committed to Independence, but nowhere in the article is there expressed interest from the C-USA side.

It linked an article from the Orlando sentinel in ‘94 with UCF’s AD at the time rejecting interest in the conference merging of the metro and great Midwest conference in what would be CUSA.

Quote:"We are more inclined to be an independent for about five years," Sloan said, "and then see if we are attractive to the SEC or ACC."

I’m sure there was interest and probably talks but with UCF’s AD showing no interest and even saying so publicly why extend an invite just to be rejected? It was a dumb move by Sloan that set UCF back significantly. Glad we overcame it but we could have saved 15-20 years.

My understanding is that CUSA was interested in UCF, mostly for FB-only.

Sloan really thought he was just a few 10 win seasons on the gridiron from getting into a major conference despite the complete lack of infrastructure for all the other sports and the shoestring football budget. What a moron. At least he later focused on Big East FB-only...if we had been able to get that with Miami rolling into town as an "equal," that would have been huge for program development. Alas.

Right, I have a hard time believing the merger of two basketball-centric conferences would look to include UCF's basketball program at the time. ECU didn't get in for hoops initially, I imagine UCF would have been looked at the same.

ECU basketball wasn't very good in the mid-late-1990s, but at least they played in the CAA, which was one if not two steps above UCF's basketball conference (the Trans-American, later the Atlantic Sun). UCF basketball honestly would have been a complete non-starter as regards C-USA.

(05-18-2020 10:36 PM)BraveKnight Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 10:23 PM)CarlSmithCenter Wrote:  A small detail that didn’t make sense was Houston to the Big East while the Big XII took SMU and TCU. I would think Houston would get the Big 12 call instead of SMU due to public school politics and preferring to have only one private school in the Metroplex along with a presence in Houston.

He said that Houston wanted to be in the Big East over the B12 because of bad blood from when Baylor was picked over them a while ago.

This part of the scenario makes zero sense. Houston would join the Big 12 in a heartbeat. This is an instance of the author trying to change reality to fit the narrative he wants to achieve. It’s a bogus reason to put Houston in the Big East.

(05-18-2020 11:49 PM)Nittany_Bearcat Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 04:24 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:55 PM)CitrusUCF Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:21 PM)MidknightWhiskey Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 01:39 PM)esayem Wrote:  The problem is, not only was UCF committed to Independence, but nowhere in the article is there expressed interest from the C-USA side.

It linked an article from the Orlando sentinel in ‘94 with UCF’s AD at the time rejecting interest in the conference merging of the metro and great Midwest conference in what would be CUSA.

Quote:"We are more inclined to be an independent for about five years," Sloan said, "and then see if we are attractive to the SEC or ACC."

I’m sure there was interest and probably talks but with UCF’s AD showing no interest and even saying so publicly why extend an invite just to be rejected? It was a dumb move by Sloan that set UCF back significantly. Glad we overcame it but we could have saved 15-20 years.

My understanding is that CUSA was interested in UCF, mostly for FB-only.

Sloan really thought he was just a few 10 win seasons on the gridiron from getting into a major conference despite the complete lack of infrastructure for all the other sports and the shoestring football budget. What a moron. At least he later focused on Big East FB-only...if we had been able to get that with Miami rolling into town as an "equal," that would have been huge for program development. Alas.

Right, I have a hard time believing the merger of two basketball-centric conferences would look to include UCF's basketball program at the time. ECU didn't get in for hoops initially, I imagine UCF would have been looked at the same.

ECU basketball wasn't very good in the mid-late-1990s, but at least they played in the CAA, which was one if not two steps above UCF's basketball conference (the Trans-American, later the Atlantic Sun). UCF basketball honestly would have been a complete non-starter as regards C-USA.

Right, and as I understand, UCF was in the Sun Belt and left after one season over a TV contract dispute.

(05-19-2020 07:58 AM)esayem Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 11:49 PM)Nittany_Bearcat Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 04:24 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:55 PM)CitrusUCF Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 02:21 PM)MidknightWhiskey Wrote:  It linked an article from the Orlando sentinel in ‘94 with UCF’s AD at the time rejecting interest in the conference merging of the metro and great Midwest conference in what would be CUSA.


I’m sure there was interest and probably talks but with UCF’s AD showing no interest and even saying so publicly why extend an invite just to be rejected? It was a dumb move by Sloan that set UCF back significantly. Glad we overcame it but we could have saved 15-20 years.

My understanding is that CUSA was interested in UCF, mostly for FB-only.

Sloan really thought he was just a few 10 win seasons on the gridiron from getting into a major conference despite the complete lack of infrastructure for all the other sports and the shoestring football budget. What a moron. At least he later focused on Big East FB-only...if we had been able to get that with Miami rolling into town as an "equal," that would have been huge for program development. Alas.

Right, I have a hard time believing the merger of two basketball-centric conferences would look to include UCF's basketball program at the time. ECU didn't get in for hoops initially, I imagine UCF would have been looked at the same.

ECU basketball wasn't very good in the mid-late-1990s, but at least they played in the CAA, which was one if not two steps above UCF's basketball conference (the Trans-American, later the Atlantic Sun). UCF basketball honestly would have been a complete non-starter as regards C-USA.

Right, and as I understand, UCF was in the Sun Belt and left after one season over a TV contract dispute.

Correct. Another bad long-term decision by the administration.

Another monumentally stupid decision was declining the state offer to build us an equivalent of the Sun Dome and deciding to stick with our much smaller arena. The problem with having former FB coaches as ADs is that they never understood the importance of the other sports and building infrastructure for those sports to succeed. It was all premised on football being the only consideration and that consideration only going so far as looming at big wins and potential.

Have a tough time buying the stadium and arena being fast tracked the way it was since (with the stadium) it was the construction of Marshall's expansion that led to the Bounce House based on cost.

(05-19-2020 06:33 AM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 10:36 PM)BraveKnight Wrote:  

(05-18-2020 10:23 PM)CarlSmithCenter Wrote:  A small detail that didn’t make sense was Houston to the Big East while the Big XII took SMU and TCU. I would think Houston would get the Big 12 call instead of SMU due to public school politics and preferring to have only one private school in the Metroplex along with a presence in Houston.

He said that Houston wanted to be in the Big East over the B12 because of bad blood from when Baylor was picked over them a while ago.

This part of the scenario makes zero sense. Houston would join the Big 12 in a heartbeat. This is an instance of the author trying to change reality to fit the narrative he wants to achieve. It’s a bogus reason to put Houston in the Big East.

Have to agree with this

UH absolutely hates UT and blames them (unfairly IMO...yes I said it) for their being left out when the SWC fell apart but they also desperately want to be in a conference with UT and or A&M again. This is because UH desperately wants to be seen as an equal of A&M and UT and as the next State Flagship school (and thereby permanently passing TTU)

Being in a hypothetical conference with both of us would be their ultimate dream come true.

(05-19-2020 09:27 AM)whittx Wrote:  Have a tough time buying the stadium and arena being fast tracked the way it was since (with the stadium) it was the construction of Marshall's expansion that led to the Bounce House based on cost.

Certainly what made BHNS feasible was a few projects that demonstrated the ability to build it that way (I think SMU may have been one as well). But there had been discussion of a cheaper steel stadium before.

The driving force, though, it still going to be the Citrus Bowl renovation and UCF not being willing to find an alternate home for a year. I wonder, however, if the Citrus Bowl people would have been more accommodating of UCF's needs if UCF had been in a power conference. It was easy for them to try to big time MAC/CUSA UCF, but maybe a bit harder to do so against a Big East UCF, especially if UCF was drawing a lot better. So it's possible that UCF never moves on campus and instead playing in a high end Citrus Bowl (that probably gets the upper deck fully refurbished as well with an actual tenant in the stadium). That would have limited the growth of the program for sure, just like RayJay has for USF.

The arena was going to happen regardless because UCF needed an appropriate facility for graduation and other university events. And the arena was paid for significantly by the State of Florida for that reason, so I could see UCF pushing that earlier in the process. The state was cash flush throughout the late 90s, so it's possible.